This invention relates generally to containers for comestibles, and more particularly to containers for liquid comestibles; such as, soft drinks, sodas, milk shakes and the like.
It is a conventional practice today to provide containers of the type described above with a plastic lid that embraces the lip that is formed at the upper end of the container sidewall, with the lid being pre-punched to provide a means for accepting a drinking straw so that the contents of the container can be consumed with the lid in place. While such lidded containers are in widespread common use today, many problems are associated therewith, not the least of which is that the relatively rigid, thick-gage plastic lids are expensive. And, particularly in fast food restaurants, some difficulties are encountered in properly seating the lids on the containers. Furthermore, the cutouts that are provided in the lids for accepting a straw have a tendency to leak, if the container is inadvertently knocked over.
Thus, there is a need to provide a less expensive closure arrangement, one which can be easily and quickly applied, which will accept a straw, and which will not leak. p It has also been proposed in the past to form closures for comestibles and the like out of heat shrunk plastic film. Typical containers, methods and machines are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,014,320, 3,257,769 3,354,604, 3,354,605, 3,460,317, and 3,508,380. Since such closures are aesthentically unattractive, have a tendency to leak, and do not accept a drinking straw, to date they have not provided a viable alternative to lidded containers, particularly in fast food restaurants.